The site, which uses simplified Chinese character, is aimed at providing more “localized service” to Chinese members. LinkedIn said it hopes the site will attract 140 million new professionals — that would mean doubling site membership worldwide, which is presently 277 million.

LinkedIn is one of the few social networks with a growing presence in China.

While sites such as Facebook and Twitter are blocked in China, LinkedIn has already amassed over 4 million members there via the company’s English-language site over the past decade.

“Expanding our presence in China presents a challenge that our company must address directly, clearly and in a manner consistent with our core values,” LinkedIn CEO Jeff Weiner wrote in a blog post on Monday.

China has become among the fastest growing countries for the company.

While Weiner said LinkedIn “fundamentally disagrees” with government censorship, he said that LinkedIn’s absence in China would limit “the ability of individual Chinese citizens to pursue and realize the economic opportunities, dreams and rights most important to them.”